The present invention relates to dump vehicles in general, and more particularly, it relates to a latching mechanism for the rear gate of the box of a dump vehicle with an automatic tilt release. Such vehicles (called dump wagons) are used in agriculture for collecting forage, for example, from the remainder of crops left in the field after harvesting with a combine. It is desired that the box be generally closed (that is, have four enclosing sidewalls and a bottom) for collecting purposes, and that the rear wall of the box be a gate which may be opened for discharging its contents.
In the past, the gate of these agricultural dump wagons has been hinged at its upper side for swinging rearwardly relative to the box when the box is tilted. Typically, the rear gate is locked with a conventional latch and chains, thereby requiring that the operator get down from the tractor pulling the wagon to unchain and unlatch the gate before the box is tilted. After the collected material is discharged, he must again dismount the tractor and lock and chain the gate for further use.
It will be appreciated that the area in which the collected forage is dumped normally has a large quantity of organic materials lying in the forage storage area which frequently is soft, particularly when wet. When a farmer brings the dump wagon into the area and stops it to unlatch and unchain the rear gate, he frequently has difficulty obtaining enough traction to move the wagon which, of course, is weighted down by the collected forage.
The present invention, by providing an automatic tilt release for the latching mechanism for the rear gate of the box thus not only provides convenience for the operator in not having to get down off the tractor before and after discharging the collected material, but it enables him to discharge the contents of the box while the tractor is still in motion, thereby obviating the problem of getting stuck in the soft forage in the discharge area.
The latching mechanism of the present invention includes a latch which is pivotally mounted to the side of the box of the dump wagon for movement between an open or release position and the latching position. A spring biases the latch to the latching position wherein the latch engages a rod or bolt mounted to the hinged rear gate of the box. A shaft is rotatably mounted beneath the box and extends transverse of it. A first link is connected between the shaft and the latch for moving the latch from the latching position to the open position when the shaft is rotated. A second or actuator link is connected between the frame of the vehicle and the rotatable shaft for rotating the shaft when the box is tilted rearwardly. This action, upon rotating the shaft, moves the latch to the open position and releases the rear gate as the box is tilted rearwardly about the frame. Because of the particular arrangement of the preferred embodiment as disclosed in more detail within, there is provided a very quick release of the latching mechanism upon initial tilt of the box, and this is highly advantageous in that the rear gate is permitted to swing open as soon as the box is tilted. This prevents the load from falling against the rear gate and interfering with the automatic release mechanism.
Thus, with the present invention, a farmer may pull the dump wagon through the area where he intends to deposit the collected material, and without stopping the tractor, cause the box to dump. Immediately upon tilt, the latch mechanism releases, and further tilting of the box causes the gate to open and the contents to be discharged without having to stop the forward motion of the tractor and wagon.
Other features and advantages will be apparent to persons skilled in the art from the following detailed description of a preferred embodiment accompanied by the attached drawing wherein identical reference numerals are used to refer to like parts in the various views.